"newsline" i'm james tengan in tokyo. politics is the big talk in malaysia right now. voters cast ballots in a general election on sunday. the national front coalition has ruled since independence from britain in 1957. but now the opposition people's alliance is vying for a

majority. malay's make up half of the population. but they were at an economic disadvantage to the chinese. since the 1970s, they have tried to reduce this despairty. the affirmative action was popular and kept the national front coalition in power for more than half of a century. mal malayians have seen their gdp growth five-fold. but those only profiting were those connected to the government. even those supporting affirmative action feel dissatisfaction. >> reporter: malaysians have watched the economy boom.

across the capitol city, there is a frantic contradiction. they're snapping up penthouses even before they're built. consumption is up despite a hike in prices over the last decade. and the healthy economy is encouraging malaysians to buy. >> translator: i plan to spend about $170 on clothes today. >> translator: the government's developing because goods are getting more expensive. >> reporter: despite rapid economy growth there are still plenty of people who feel aggrieved. mohammed zarahi is an ethic malay. he works as a motorcycle courier in kuala lumpur. he says the policy hasn't helped him because he has no political

connections. he earns 560 u.s. dollars a month. zahari's wife workings as well, pulling in a total household income up to $1,000. that's 60% national average. he always dreamed of buying a home for his family, but rising prices have put a damper on his plans. >> translator: people like me, we have to spend extra carefully. it's not fair. >> reporter: politicians on both sides have promised to increase wages and reduce the income gap. zahari is dissatisfied with the ruling party. he also worried that the opposition does not have the political experience needed to rule.

>> translator: whatever the current government lacks, an opposition government could have its own shortcomings. >> reporter: some experts say the preferential treatment is not enough for the economic disparities. >> it is this equal distribution that is the main cause of dissatisfaction. it's not between groups now, sort of challenge or the issue now. the distribution does not seem to be fair or does not filter down to those that need it most. >> reporter: the ruling party leaders say continued economic growth will lead to higher wages.

opposition party leaders insist a change of government is essential to bring equality. and malaysian voters will be casting their ballots sunday, hoping for a balance of both. >> u.s. researchers say that north koreans are developing a reactor intended for power generation but it could add to worries over the nuclear program. they say a dome was placed over the reactor containment building and cooling water pipes appear to have been installed by last november. the external construction was completed in february of this year. a large crane was disassembled and removed by late march. the reactor could go into operation within a few months in fuk lar fuel is available. but they say north korea's lack

of experience with light water reactors is causing concerns. but they add that it will have residual capable to produce plutonium that can be used for nuclear weapons. u.s. trade officials are urging the government to crack down on hackers that are stealing intellectual property. the office of the united states trade representative released it's annual report on how effective ugs trading partners are at protecting and enforcing sbel lecture property rights. the report says that individuals affiliated with the chinese government and military have infiltrated computer systems and have stolen hundreds of terabites of information. president barack obama say that china is involved in some of the growing cyber attacks.

the report puts china, india, and eight other nations on a priority watch list. it designates the ukraine at the top. six people were killed and seriously wounded others. it happened in the predominantly pattani muslim province. they pulled up outside of a building housing the shop and owners home. they fired a shot and then went in. the victims were the shop owner, his 1-year-old son, and his customers. most of them were buddhist. must limbs are in the majority of the country's three southern most provinces including pattani. mill tanlts have continued their

attacks. more than 5,000 people have been killed in the area since 2004. the european central bank will cut it's bench mark interest rate to the lowest level ever to help the sluggish economy. they agreed to cut it to a record low of 0.5%. the reduction is the first since july of last year. the economy is in a state of uncertainty. recent data out of germany indicates that the outlook for the main engine of the single currency block is worsening. observers say they're considering new measures to prompt more lending to smaller businesses to help them stay afloat. policymakers say they have

set a record. they supplied more and more money to financial markets in than effort to stimulate the economy. at the echbld of april, they say the monetary base hit a new high. boj officials say they supplied more than 150 trillion yen. the amount was up from over 126% a year ago. it increases the amount of currency in the hands of the public, and commercial deposits held in the central reserves. policy makers decided that their meeting last month to double the base by the end of next year. at the end, some boj policymakers were worried about drastic easing measures. they chaired by kuroda who took office in the previous month.

the summary shows that the nine policymakers shared the notion that it's their goal to achieve the 2% inflation as soon as possible. they believe they should enter a new faze of monetary easing to reach the target. one member pointing out it could restrain investments for companies like life insurance companies. another said the bachk is engaged in financing fiscal deficits. on the boj's 2% inflation target. one member noted uncertainties in achieving it in the proposed two year time frame. and here on "newsline," the latest market figures.

japanese prime minister shinzo abe has spent his first few months in office working on the economy. now he wants to revise the constitution that marks it's 66th anniversary on friday. japanese are divided over whether the constitution should be changed at all.

nhk world's jun has the story. >> reporter: abe and his ruling democratic party have kept their goal in sight since they took power last september. >> translator: it is prime men tir abe's believe that we need to change the constitution for an independent nation state. >> reporter: the constitution was written after world war ii. the u.s.-led alleyed forces controlled it's drafting. the most significant characteristic is pacifism. article nine says the japanese people forever renounce war. it led to japan to maintained armed forces exclue sifly for defense. the liberal democrats want to upgrade the status of the forces to a military force.

prime minister abe outlined his plans soon after taking office. >> translator: in japan, the sdf is not called a military because it's treated as one. we need to fix the contradiction. >> translator: nhk polled about 1600 people. 33% said they want to revise article 9. 30% said no, and 32% were undecided. the poll suggests that attitudes among japanese are changing. the yes answers are up 5 percentage points from last year. and the noes are down 11 points. among those in favor, nearly half said it should be revised to clearly stipulate japan's

right to have defense capabilities. about a third wants to make changes to allow japan to take part in u.n.-ed military activities. among those against modifying the constitution. about two thirds define article nine as the most important article. 16% say it doesn't need to be revised, and that changing it's interpretation would be enough. >> i personally want to keep the peace constitution as it is. >> it's been a longime since it was established. so i think it's all right to change it in accordance with reality. prime minister abe says he first wants to change the proceed to amend the constitution. article 96 stipulates that two-thirds support in both chambers is required before

japanese vote on any referendums. he wants to make the conditions a simple majority. constitution experts are split on the issue. >> translator: people tend to think a proceed is not important, but on this issue it has substantial meaning. a normal law can be passed with a simple majority. that for a constitutional amendment was made especially high because of it's importance. >> translator: the change will allow the people to express their opinions rather than making the hurdle higher to propose a change. a proposal should be put to the people so they can make the decision. >> prime minister abe wants to make revising the constitution an important part of his campaign political parties are already discussing the pros and cons. the debate may make japanese

more opinionated e about a document that's guided them for six decades. police in the u.s. state of kentucky are investigating a tragedy that could rally propossibilities of gun control. a 5-year-old boy killed his 2-year-old sister with a child-sized rifle he received for his birthday. the boy was playing with the gun at home and shot his sister by accident. they say the children's mother was cleaning another room, and she had not realized the gun was loaded. the manufacturer markets the product for children calling it "my first rifle." the whole community is devastated from this, you know. >> some americans have been campaigning since december for tougher laws on gun ownership.

senators considered a bill to expand background checks on people whoment to buy firearms. they came under pressure from proponents of gun ownership throughout the bill. >> young japanese who experienced the tsunami two years ago dream of rebuilding their communities. for inspiration some are looking overseas. some visited india. here's nhk world's akito. >> reporter: a group of high school students arrives on a special visit to aceh. they are from iwate prefecture in northeastern japan.

their hometowns were devastated by the tsunami of march 2011. satoko kariya grew up in a port town. she hopes to pursue a career in the field of reconstruction. until recently, she was eager to avoid painful memories of the disaster. but in aceh, she discovers people have a different approach. many surrounding ships were left untouched. >> translator: now i understand that the ships and other debris from the disaster serve as an important reminder, not just for aceh but for people in japan and the rest of the world. they remind us of the terrible damage caused by the tsunamis. >> reporter: besides learning about reconstruction, satoko has a more personal goal to fulfill. she's hoping to reunite with the

young women who visited her school after the tsunami. nora nadia's own experience in aceh to help japanese students after the disaster. she was 11 when the indian ocean tsunami devastated the coast of sumatra. nora was traumatized by the loss of her aunt and uncle. four years later she began studying japanese through a nonprofit organization involved in the reconstruction effort. >> translator: i know it's impossible to avoid the pain of losing members of your family. but i've also learned that taking up new challenges allows you to make new friends and to regain confidence.

>> reporter: it's the last day of the satoko kariya's visit. the moment she's been waiting for has finally arrived. nora brought a little surprise. it's a video of an event held on march 11th to encourage the survivors of the tsunami in japan. ♪ the video shows singers holding up the japanese character for bond. >> translator: i didn't expect people in aceh to hold such an event.

it's very touching. i had an unforgettable experience here, and i don't want to waste it. i hope i can build on it to help reconstruct my hometown in japan. >> reporter: satoko is being encouraged by the people of aceh. with their support, she's now making great strides forward. nhk world, aceh, indonesia. you're watching "newsline." i'm james tengen. for us here in tokyo, the forecast calls for fair skies. but for china, which is also on a golden week holiday, the outlook isn't as good.

as rachel ferguson tells us in the world weather report. >> hi there. yes, i'm afraid there is not much change in that situation. there is a low sitting to the north and we're getting widespread rainfall. in some areas it is much more intense into the next 48 hours. everything in the yellow is expecting more than 100 millimeterings of rain. and here up to about 130 millimeters. some places will pick up more inceni intense rainfall than that it. it going to be spreading east, and at the moment, the temperatures are going to be helping -- the rain is helping keep the temperature down. hong kong experienced a record of 16.6 this morning which is

the coolest it's been for the beginning of may since 1917. that should change as warmer winds come up from the south. they're going to be impacting even northern china. meanwhile, tokyo, 18 degrees on friday, and we generally have a good outlook across the country for the next few days. let's go into the americas where our sorm system is makes it's way east. and then that cold air is coming in. take a look at this. the snow is coming all the way down here. we're seeing a wide band of snow. it will be thunderstorms and particularly halve rain here.

a flak flood possible as well as river flooding here. different problems out towards the southwest, we have fire weather. it's hot and windy. we have red flag alerts for a wildfire. 33 in los angeles. in denver, in the single figures there, 6 degrees, you usually see around 19 or 20 this time of year. let's head now into europe where things have not changed much. very unsettled. we have showers and thunderstorms all the way from northern liberia, france, and through poland. this should settle down by the weekend, but for the time being it will be windy across much of italy. and up towards the northwest as well. a series of lows coming through parts of the uk, snow in the mountains of nor way there.

temperatures ideally improving. 19 in madrid, 18 in paris, and down in athens it is 31. it is a fairly middle 13 for you in warsaw. i'll leave you now with your extended forecast.

shoppers at a department store in osaka here in japan are enjoying service with an electronic smile. the robot is named minami. she responds to customers using ten set phrases. her creator says she has huge potential. >> i think she could be part of robot systems that help people in nursing care or as receptionists or as security guards. >> she will be greating shoppers through the 12th of this month.

i hope there is never a day when minami takes over my job. stay tuned for more here on nhk world. i'm james tengan. thanks for watching.

♪ "design talks." >> folding a single sheet of paper to make beautiful shapes, animals, birds and flowers. the traditional japanese art of origami is now known worldwide. but what is origami y?